Everyone loves vacation. There is a very specific joy in setting your out-of-office alert and fleeing for the airport. Not to mention the sun in your face, the great food, and the joy of a week without an alarm clock. Vacations are fun. They’re relaxing! A good cruise will have you feeling recharged and calm. But there’s more benefit to a cruise than just R&R—though there is plenty of that!—like vitamin D, fresh air, and a blue mind. Here are a few ways your mind and body will benefit from cruising the open water.

Everybody Loves the Sunshine

Nearly 50% of the world is vitamin D deficient. Look, we’re not saying a cruise is going to give you all the vitamin D stores you need to make it through the winter, but it’s a start. Vitamin D is a bigger deal than it might seem. A sunny day—wear sunscreen, please—does more than just calm and clear your mind. For starters, vitamin D helps promote good bone health. And regular doses of vitamin D will help boost serotonin levels in your brain which can buoy your mood.

Breathe in that Fresh Air

Most of us spend our working days cooped up indoors. But nature—from the woods to the sea—can have a huge impact on our well-being. Fresh air is good for your mind, body, and soul. So make sure to get out on the deck and enjoy the high seas. Because research shows that enjoying your time in nature and breathing in fresh air increases energy in 90 percent of people.

Most of us spend our working days cooped up indoors. But nature—from the woods to the sea—can have a huge impact on our well-being.

The Beauty of a Blue Mind

For years, advocates of living near water have professed the benefits of what they call Blue Mind. Living near water—a stream, lake, the ocean—calms the mind, they claimed. Now there is research to back it up. A recent study found that proximity to water promotes better mental health and physical wellbeing. Cruising the open sea isn’t simply relaxing, it will put your mind at ease.

Take a Dip

The sea has long been considered therapeutic. In fact, it dates back to the late 1700s when the scientist Richard Russell suggested patients embrace the sea as a form of therapy. Russell even suggested patients drink the sea water. The consumption of seawater is thankfully no longer in vogue, but these days many around the world have adopted what is called thalassotherapy. Simply put: it’s treating the sea itself as therapy. Which you can do on your cruise. It does wonders for your skin and your pores. Various elements, from magnesium and potassium to calcium and, yes, sodium, are absorbed through your skin. And while it hasn’t been proven in a lab, it is a tradition dating back hundreds of years. So come on in, the water’s nice.